Vol 8, Issue 2, August 12, 2021
Hamilton's Labour Market Connection
Your weekly news & updates from WPH!
in this week's edition: Virtual Youth Committee Volunteer opportunity, Supporting individuals with sight loss in career services, Women out of work: Assessing Hamilton's Employment Disparities During COVID-19, The 50 year old Intern: Mid-life Canadians' are not changing jobs- they're beginning again
Virtual Youth Committee

WPH is seeking young professionals interested in digital job development in the Hamilton region.



Please reach out and send your resume to: info@workforceplanninghamilton.ca 
Supporting individuals with sight loss in career services
Many people have the perception that being blind means total blindness and that it has been since birth. However, the reality is that vision loss covers a broad array of visual disability and can happen to any person at any stage of life.

Today, there are over 1.5 million Canadians living with sight loss and an estimated 5.59 million have an eye disease that could cause sight loss. According to the Canadian National Institute for the Blind’s (CNIB) International Levels of Employment Study, the national unemployment rate of Canadians living with sight loss is 16%.

Women out of Work: Assessing Hamilton’s Employment Disparities During COVID-19
“It is impossible to do all of the roles at the same time. I feel guilty for not being able to give my full attention to anyone or anything. It is a constant struggle of not feeling like I am doing enough while simultaneously doing everything.” - a survey respondent


COVID-19 has disproportionately affected female-dominated sectors in Canada and women are facing excessive barriers to re-entering the workforce. In Hamilton, this is no exception.
Looking to understand and address the gender disparities that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on our local labour market, the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce conducted a study over the course of 2020-2021 that heard from nearly 1,600 self-identified Hamilton women. 
Jay Smith Hayward is at a significantly different life stage than many of her peers. An associate at a family law firm, she enrolled in the University of Alberta’s law school in her late 30s, and did her articling placement at 40, all while raising two children as a single mom.

Now 41, Smith Hayward said the age gap between her and other early career lawyers doesn’t faze her. “I don’t really have that much ego about hierarchies,” she said. “I have a life full of many things…and solid relationships outside of the workplace. I don’t have seniority here, but it is what it is.”

The Hamilton COVID Concierge for Business is a one-stop online resource centre and phone line dedicated to supporting Hamilton businesses with their COVID-19 business questions and concerns.
Hamilton businesses can call the COVID Concierge at 905-521-3989 (Mon-Fri, 8:30am-4:30pm) or Contact Us online.


The Hamilton COVID Concierge for Business is brought to you by the Hamilton COVID Concierge Team, comprised of the City of Hamilton and the three local Chambers of Commerce.
Workforce Planning Hamilton | 905-521-5777| info@workforceplanninghamilton.ca | www.workforceplanninghamilton.ca